The Clarets are fresh off a promotion to the EPL after finishing second in The Championship last season. After losing their first two fixtures of the 2014-15 campaign, Burnley bounced back to draw United at nil on Saturday.

To add insult to that disappointing result for the Red Devils, they have now lost one of their hot young stars in Keane for the time being. However, it may be best for Keane's development in the long run.

Although he played rather well in a loan stint with the Blackburn Rovers earlier in 2014, Keane has still struggled to adapt to the spotlight at Old Trafford. Before the season began, it appeared Keane was excited and poised to contribute right away during a period of transition for United, per TheFA.com's Nicholas Veevers:

"I’ve heard the new manager likes to bring young players through and that’s always been the way at United. Obviously with [Ryan Giggs] staying on as his assistant that can only benefit the young players and hopefully we can get a good pre-season and a chance to prove ourselves."

A particularly underwhelming performance in a 4-0 loss to MK Dons in the Capital One Cup drew the ire of fans and seemed to help seal Keane's fate with the Red Devils for the time being.

But the jury is still far from reaching a definitive conclusion on Keane. There is no denying that he is a top-tier talent whose future is still bright at age 21—even if his recent form has not been up to par.

While Keane is not yet ready to be a prominent contributor for United, he could get some invaluable competitive reps against top-tier competition. If he can help Burnley avoid relegation this season, it will expedite Keane's path to solidifying himself in the Red Devils starting XI.

There will be far less pressure and scrutiny on Keane as he seeks to take advantage of his immense potential. Then again, toiling away on a losing team and not seeing much bottom-line improvement could go further in besetting Keane's career trajectory.